Jakarta or formerly known as Batavia, is the main capital city of Indonesia. With a population of 9.6 million residents, it is one of the biggest diverse cities in South East Asia. If you like urban lifestyle, street food, shopping mayhem and crazy nightlife then Jakarta is your place to be. The city is modern and diverse. It has kept its traditional and colonial influences.

However, to enjoy the beauty of Jakarta you need to get the right tips and tricks. As being from Jakarta, I'll share with you all the tips and tricks you need to know.

If you have never traveled to tropical countries, you might need to visit their doctor to do a vaccination checklist. There are several tropical disease risks such as dengue fever, malaria, sun or heat wave sensitivity etc. En ce qui concerne la santé, vous aurez quelques vaccins puisque vous pouvez attraper quelques maladies tropicales.

2) How to reach Jakarta/Comment se rendre à Jakarta

Jakarta is one of the main gates to enter Indonesia and you just need to take an airplane that lands at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. The airport is located in Tangerang precisely near the border of West Jakarta. Keep in mind that the only way to access the city is by taxi, bus or rental car (there is not have direct trains to the airport). That said, the inhabitants of Jakarta use the mobile app Go-jek to rent a motorcycle and have a driver. Motorcycles cannot use the highway, therefore you will have to use crowded suburban roads (not the best scene you would like to see as a tourist but yeah live the adventure!)

Also if you are already in Indonesia especially in Java, you can take the train as well to reach the city check it here.

The real question starts from the inside of your wallet actually. Jakarta has everything you need, from 5 star hotels to the cheapest place to sleep ever. When I said cheapest I really mean it. You can actually spend 0 euro (which is obvious by couch-surfing) or by using AirBnB or Motels (The starting price is +/- 8 euros).Avoid places that are far away from the city center if you don't want to be stuck in massive traffic jams. As being an insider, I would recommend travelers to stay near the city center in areas such as Sudirman, Senopati, Menteng, Senayan Kemang and Kuningan. These areas are near shopping centers, cafes, restaurants, museums, clubs, bars and landmarks. But if you want to explore more of the other part of the city you can stay in The Thousands Islands, Ancol or Bogor.

At the end of my two years of studies in France, I wasn't satisfied with my English level. I have stayed in Montreal for two months but I didn't improve anything. French and English are both spoken there, so speaking French was easier and faster for me, I was thinking that speaking English where everyone could speak French didn't make sense. Then, I decided to continue my studies in Holland. Courses were taught in English and 90% of the Dutch population could speak English (even the gramps!). The first weeks were hard for me, although I could understand everything, speaking English was still challenging. I felt like everyone around me could speak better than me. Today I'm able to speak English and Spanish fluently but I'm still applying the following advice to improve my skills and I learn new words everyday.

2.Don't be afraid of making mistakes/N'ayez pas peur de faire des fautesWhen we learn a new language we are shy when it comes to speak (we've all been there!). Have you noticed that you feel more confident after a few beers?! It doesn't mean that beer makes you smarter or anything, it gives you confidence. Confidence is what you need to work on. Take it easy. No one is going to take the piss of you if you try and you will see that the opposite actually happens. I love it when foreigners try to speak French (it's CUTE!) and I'm the first one to cheer them up!

When I started to learn Spanish again last year (I had forgotten everything I learned in high school), I realized that I could understand easily the Mexican accent whereas the Spanish accent was still too hard for me to understand. I watched Mexican soap operas almost every day and within two months I could understand any Spanish accent (even the Argentinian one that sounds like Italian)! If you learn German, maybe the Swiss German will be easier for you to understand... Try to listen to all of them and find out which one is the easiest for you!

Your grammar book is not the Holy bible, put it away! Start watching cartoon movies. The vocabulary used in those movies is easy to understand as those movies are created for kids. Then, you can take it to the next level and watch funny TV shows (actors speak slowly so we can get their jokes) or action movies. GET RID OF SUBTITLES. I know, you will feel like you don't understand anything but after a while, your ears will get use to it. Trust me!

Follow your favourite artists on social media to learn slang words without putting too much effort into it. You can follow me on Snapachat (studentsNtravel), if you want to learn some French. Play your jam with the lyrics and check the words you don't understand or watch Youtube tutorials in the language you are learning.

When learning a language, nothing beats moving to the country where the language is spoken. It only works if you don't stay with your compatriots. Move in with native speakers, become friends with them, do some activities with them!

7.Ask native speakers to correct your mistakes/Demandez aux natifs de corrigez vos erreursWhen I was in South Africa, my manager taught me how to pronounce "hungry" properly. I used to pronounce it like "angry" (because of my French accent!)English native speakers don't usually correct you unless you ask them to do so. Spanish native speakers do it without you asking and I love it!

The Parliament is one of the most fascinating buildings I’ve ever seen! The square in which it’s situated is absolutely gorgeous, and you even have a great view of the opposite side of the city, Buda. Le Parlement de Budapest est un édifice incroyable tout comme sa location. De là, vous pouvez apercevoir l'autre partie de la ville, Buda.

The Chain Bridge

The Hungarian capital has several Danube bridges, but the Chain Bridge is definitely the most beautiful one ( it’s even more amazing at night!). It’s famous for its huge lion sculptures, that were installed in 1852. La capitale hongroise a plusieurs ponts mais celui-ci est probablement un des plus beaux (surtout le soir). Ce pont est connu car il a des sculptures de lions installées depuis 1852.

The Castle of Buda

Our Castle is situated on the top of the Castle Hill, from where you have a wonderful view of the city. There are several museums inside the building, but it’s even worth to just go up there, and admire the architecture and the view.Ce château est situé tout en haut de la Colline du Château.Vous aurez une vue magnifique sur la ville. Il y a plusieurs musées à l'intérieur de l'édifice mais on peut très bien y aller rien que pour la vue!

Fisherman’s Bastion

The bastion is also on the Castle Hill, and I, personally, prefer this to the Castle. The architecture is breathtaking, and you have a great view of the Parliament from here. I like to visit this place during the evening.Le bastion de Fisherman se trouve aussi sur la Colline du Château et personnellement, je le préfère au Château. Son architecture est magnifique, et de là, vous pouvez apercevoir le Parlement. Allez-y le soir!

St. Stephen’s Basilica

This is the third largest church building in Hungary, and definitely one of the most beautiful. Fortunately for you, you are allowed to go up to the tower, from where you can admire the picturesque cityscape.La Basilique Saint Stephen est une des plus grandes basiliques d'Hongrie et également une des plus belles. N'hésitez pas à aller en haut de la tour pour admirer la ville.

Heroes’ Square

The Heroes’ Square is right next to the City Park, surrounded by museums. This is definitely a must-see in Budapest, full of statues of the heroes of the Hungarian history.

It’s a lovely walk up to the Gellért Hill, and it’s totally worth the sweat! There are wonderful parks along the way, and when you arrive at the Citadella, and the Hungarian Statue of Liberty, you will be able to admire this wonderful city from above.Allez vous balader au Gellert-hegy, il y a des parcs magnifiques et quand vous arriverez au Citadella et au niveau de la version hongroise de la Statue de la Liberté, vous aurez une vue imprenable sur la ville.

Margaret Island

Margaret Island is very popular among locals. We like to go running or cycling on the island, have a romantic walk, or a picnic with friends. We often take our dogs for a walk here, or play games in the park. There is a little zoo, a Japanese garden, fountains, and ruins of old churches that you can explore.L'Ile Margaret est l'endroit favori des locaux. On y va pour courir, faire des balades romantiques ou pour faire du vélo. Il y a un petit zoo, un jardin japonais, des fontaines et des ruines à explorer.

This is a very interesting hidden gem in Budapest, that most people don’t even know about! It’s a tiny Turkish quarter on a hill, from where you also have a great view of the capital. It is at its best during summer, as there are wonderful flowers and plants of vibrant colours.Peu de gens connaissent ce coin. C'est un mini quartier turc sur une colline. vous aurez une jolie vue sur la ville (comme partout à Budapest). Allez-y surtout en été pour observer les fleurs.

3)Experience some Hungarian cuisine/goûtez à la cuisine hongroise

You should visit the great building of the Central Market Hall. Apart from fresh fruits, vegetables and meat, you can even taste some national dishes. A very popular one must be ’lángos’, you can buy it on the second floor. But you must know something: Hungarian people NEVER eat lángos with sweet toppings, only with garlic, sour cream and cheese (eat it this way only if you are single).Allez au marché central pour tester des plats nationaux. Essayez le ’lángos’ (à acheter au 2e étage). Les hongrois ne le mangent jamais avec des trucs sucrés mais l'accompagnent avec du fromage ou de l'ail (pour ceux qui n'ont pas d'amoureux).

If you think you’ve seen enough of Budapest, I would also recommend spending a day at a spa. We have some popular ones like Gellért or Széchenyi, but for an unforgettable experience, you should go to Rudas at night – you won’t regret it!

Also, if you’re more of a museum-goer, I would recommend the House of Terror. It’s a very interesting and unique museum! It’s a memorial for all the victims of the fascist and communist regimes, and there are exhibits of the communist era in Hungary.

Traveling can be a unique experience for any of us. The culture differences, language difficulties, the food and even the weather. Westerners travel to Indonesia and Indonesians travel to the Western world. We wanted to know how they felt about traveling to the Western World, so we asked our Indonesian friends what annoy them on the other side of the globe. Here is what they have to say:

"Most of Indonesians use a spoon when they eat. Why do they only use forks in the Western world? I think eating with a spoon is more convenient! In addition, the portion in the United States is humongous! They have a 3-course meal while in Indonesia we only have one.In my opinion, it's hard to replace rice with bread. Back in Indonesia, we eat rice all the time even for breakfast! I don't feel like I had enough if there is no rice involved. No matter how much bread I take, I'll still be hungry without rice. I always adore Indonesian food everywhere I go. But they are too expensive overseas. Furthermore, food in the Western world is 'less spicy'. On the other hand, Western dishes are easier to cook compared to Indonesian dishes.""Les indonésiens utilisent une cuillère quand ils mangent et non la fourchette comme en Occident. Ca n'engage que moi, mais manger avec une cuillère est tellement plus pratique. Les portions aux USA sont énormes. Le repas est divisé en 3 parties alors qu'en Indonésie, on a que le plat principal.

"Sometimes they greet me in Chinese by saying "ni hao"because English people (in my opinion) only know either Arabs or Chinese people. While for me I don't look like Chinese at all! In addition, they don't know where Indonesia is. Most of them only know Bali. In overall, I still think that English people are the most polite people in the world."

"As for me, I hate it when people are not friendly to tourists. I went to Paris, people were not that friendly to tourists and some of them were even racist... I need friendliness when I travel and open-mindedness. Besides that, Paris is an amazing city!""En ce qui me concerne, je déteste quand les locaux ne sont pas sympas avec les touristes. J'en ai fait l'expérience à Paris. J'ai besoin d'être avec des gens chaleureux quand je voyage. Mais à part ça, Paris est une ville incroyable."

"I don't like complicated visa bureaucracy. As being Indonesian, we have to gather a lot of documents to apply only for a touristic visa. I hope that in the future we will be able to travel with less strict rules. It will be much cooler if the Indonesian passport allows us to travel as freely as Western passports. "

"When it comes to winter, I cannot stand wearing a lot of thick clothes. For me when it's 20 degrees, it's cold! When I went to London, the weather killed me. Nevertheless, the air quality in London was much better than in Jakarta.

I have another issue. I cannot poop and clean myself properly in the Western world they only use a tissue. In Indonesia, we always use a spray water like in Japan to clean up in the toilet. We need water plus soap in the toilet! "

We are all addicted to our smartphones. I am addicted to Instagram, others to Tinder ( Little story : a customer sent us her phone back during my internship at a smartphone company because Tinder wasn't working).When it comes to traveling, I always have my favourite apps therefore I want to share with you my favourite apps.

Whatsapp

Skype

Xecurrency

Freeprints: you receive 10 of your favourite pictures freely when you subscribe (shipping costs are free too!) It is an easy app to use and you can pick pictures from your social media or from your phone, You receive them in less than one week. It works in the USA and in Europe. /C'est une appli que je viens de tester et que je recommande. Vous pouvez faire imprimer vos 10 premières photos gratuitement (les frais de ports sont offerts!). L'appli marche partout en Europe et en Amérique du Nord.

I visited Monaco back in February, and it was everything and more. It is relatively mild in winter and not excessively hot during summer.

Monaco is a magnificient place, known for being luxurious and expensive. However, I have managed to visit this place without breaking the bank, so I'll be sharing my personal tips and tricks with you today.

1.Where to stay /Où dormir ?I
landed in Nice Airport which is the closest airport to Monaco with Transavia Airlines.You can have interesting deals on Expedia(especially during the low season). I have been staying in
Nice as it was cheaper (and beautiful too!). The deal I got with Expedia included a few nights in a 3 star hotel near the central station.

From Nice, Monaco is only 24 km away. I went on a daytrip to Monaco by taking thetrain.It is a 22 minute journey and you will pay €3.90 if you take the train and €1.50 if you opt for the bus 100 (Nice-Monaco-Menton). The bus runs every 15 minutes and the trip lasts 30-45mins. It takes a scenic route
along the coast, passing through seaside towns such as Villefranche and
Beaulieu.

You can also rent a car and have a small roadtrip along the coast. As the seaside view from Nice coastline is a killer, traveling by car would enable you to stop wherever you want.

I
went for a relaxing afternoon coffee at the Café de Paris. The price
range here for beverages is quite okay for a place with a million dollar view (around 3 to 4 euro for a cup
of coffee and juicy beverages) . Eating there is quite expensive so you better go to the nearest Carrefour supermarket and make yourself your own sandwich.

Go to the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco/Visitez le musée Oceanographique

This is one of the best spots in Monaco. You can see the cliffed coast while enjoying sea fruit and learn new things at the same time. The exclusive pass to the museum and the castle are quite enjoyable as well. The rooftop of the museum is well equipped with a cafe but you can always go there for a breathtaking view.